Movie Review: Indu Sarkar used Emergency as 'metaphor' for woman's struggle, right to FOE

Mumbai: It is a film that has been among the most awaited dealing as it does with one of the most turbulent periods of India's history - the 1975-77 emergency era. The strong buzz for the film and the vociferous protests from the Congress that preceded Indu Sarkar have heightened curiosity around the film, making one expect a 'never-seen-before' account of that period. While Indu Sarkar shows us numerous violations of freedom during that period - the forced sterilization (nasbandi), the breaking up of ‘jhuggi-jhompris’, the sweeping up and arrest of all those in opposition - it fails to provide any new insight into that period. The proceedings of the film give the audience a 'deja vu' feel. Rather, the violations of freedom are sought to be shown through the story of Indu, a stammering orphan wanting to become a writer and poet, and her struggle for her freedom of expression.

After being rejected by several prospective grooms, Indu marries Naveen Sarkar (Tota Roy Chowdhury) an eligible bachelor, working as a reputed government official . Indu, who sees her marriage as a journey towards her freedom, is , however, in for a rude shock to find that her husband is a strong votary of emergency. Naveen is an aide to a minister called Omnath (Satyajit Sharma) who serves under the Prime Minister( resembling Indira Gandhi) referred to as 'Mummyji' by her son (Neil Nitin Mukesh ( resembling Sanjay Gandhi) who is referred to as 'Chief'. During emergency, Chief and Omnath order to demolish a basti in Turkman area of Delhi-- even the homes of those residents who voted for the government. Indu finds that Naveen too is involved in the demolition and has lost his human nature in the glory of fulfilling his dreams. The efforts by Indu to trace the children's parents bring Indu in contact with several activists who are engaged in opposing the totalitarian government and its policies.

These include Nanaji (Anupam Kher) who runs a group called Himmat India Sangathan, Nanaji helps her discover her political conscience and exhorts her to help lead the country to freedom from its tyrannical government. The film is the story of Indu's struggle for her freedom of expression. The film shows the excesses of emergency- arrests, tortures and censorships imposed on people and 'activists' - through the struggle of Indu to fight against the 'tyrannical government' Though the movie documents that era, there is nothing in the film that one has not seen before. Wikipedia or documentaries will do a much better job in giving knowledge about Emergency and its consequences . In fact, more than the emergency, the film is about the protagonist's personal and emotional struggles and dilemmas in her journey to realise her freedom of expression.

While manages to give a detailed account of the events during the Emergency, there is nothing in the film that one has not known before. In terms of performances, Neil Nitin Mukesh is a sheer delight to watch on screen after a long gap. From his mannerisms to his acting and dialogue delivery-- he is pitch perfect as the chief. As the protagonist Indu, Kirti , who has attracted an audience with her bold performance in 'Pink', tries to give her best in her portrayal. However, when compared to 'Pink', she isn't at her best in this role. Tota Roy Chaudhry is brilliant as Indu 's husband who uses the violations during emergency as a means for his personal gain. As Nanaji, Anupam Kher is okay. His talent seems to have been wasted by the filmmaker.

A highlight of the film is its cinematography, depicting the era with finest details like characters wearing long bellbottoms, old scooters, men smoking 'charminar' cigars, crowd listening to Kishore Kumar's songs (though which also shown to be banned later), 'Sadhna' cut hairstyles of girls, gramophones etc. 'Indu Sarkar' is an attempt to show the emergency era through the personal struggles of Indu to realise her freedom of expression. Rating : 2.5 stars: (1 for Kirti and Tota's acting, 1 for cinematography and 0.5 for story) (UNI)